Amy Walcheski has worked for Rise as a Housing Support Specialist for the last 3 years. During that time, her coworkers attest that she has always gone above and beyond to find resources for those in need. They say that she “shows an incredible amount of resourcefulness and resiliency in providing housing supports to persons served.”

In total, Amy has over 13 years of experience in the mental health field. Before coming to Rise she worked as a Mental Health Practitioner, as well as an ARMHS worker in the St. Cloud area. Throughout this experience, Amy has learned a lot about the resources offered in the state of Minnesota to help those who experience homelessness. When asked what she likes most about working for Rise, Amy responded that she loves being able to learn new things each day from her clients, and that she never has to have a set agenda for their appointments. Instead, she likes to “meet wherever they are at on any given day” to provide resources and assistance.

In the past few months, Amy has provided support to two individuals that were referred to Rise for housing assistance. Today, her coworkers say, “she continues tirelessly to transition those two folks into permanent housing of their choice.” She does this while also considering the impact of the pandemic. Not only has she had to master a mixture of both remote and in person services, but she has to understand the specific barriers and lack of resources many of her housing participants often face. Amy faces these challenges head on as she is exceptionally motivated to help her clients. She told us that she loves feeling like she is “making a positive difference in people’s lives on a daily basis in some way or another.”

“I am proud of all of the training and education I have gained through being at Rise this last three years including: conflict resolution, communication skills and techniques in a variety of settings, and being able to adjust during especially the COVID19 pandemic.”

Amy has three children, Lexi, Joey, and Wesley, and they enjoy camping and going on family trips. Outside of work she enjoys wedding coordination and creating wedding floral arrangements, as well as looking for new recipes to try on Pinterest!

*Thanks to Intern Jillian McNett for this feature!